In The News

July 13th, 2012

NEW LONDON HOSPITAL FIRST CRITICAL ACCESS HOSPITAL IN NEW ENGLAND NAMED "MOST WIRED"

New London Hospital is the very first Critical Access Hospital in New England, to be named "Most Wired - Small and Rural" by Hospitals & Health Networks magazine, the journal of the American Hospital Association (AHA). Only 25 hospitals in the country received the award in 2012. Winners are recognized for excellence in Information Technology (IT) in four focus areas: infrastructure, business and administrative management, clinical quality and safety, and clinical integration. Specific requirements are set in each of these areas and organizations must meet all of them to achieve the "Most Wired" designation.

"Our effort to become fully electronic started in 2005," explained Dave Foss, Chief Information Officer. The "Most Wired" Award is a significant achievement for New London Hospital. It validates the work our staff has done collaboratively and will continue to do toward improving clinical quality and focusing on patient safety as our primary goal. Over the past seven years we have worked diligently with the support of our Board of Trustees, administration, providers and staff to help improve patient outcomes. This national recognition affirms our strategic decision and commitment to the use of technology throughout our organization."

The AHA has recognized hospitals since 1999 that show better outcomes in patient satisfaction and several key quality measures. The nation's "Most Wired" hospitals are leveraging the adoption and use of health information technology (IT) to improve performance in a number of areas, according to the Health Care's Most Wired 2012 Survey released last week. "As shown by these survey results, hospitals continue to demonstrate how IT not only can be used to improve patient care and safety but it is also a means to improve efficiency," says Rich Umbdenstock, President and CEO of the AHA.

"I am very proud of the IS Team, the physicians and nurses, and the support staff who made this achievement possible," said Bruce King, President & CEO of New London Hospital. "Given the pace of change in healthcare and the importance of data, IT systems are a critical analytical tool that can deliver real-time information to our clinicians to be used to make safe, informed patient care decisions."